End Polio Now - Lights Up Bexhill Beach Garden
Sun, Oct 25th 2026 at 10:00 am - 7:00 pm
A special event to promote Rotary International End Polio Now campaign
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Bexhill Beach Garden Shines Purple for World Polio Day
Community illumination highlights Rotary’s continuing campaign to eradicate polio worldwide
BEXHILL-ON-SEA, Sunday 25 October 2026 — After bad weather prevented the event from taking place on World Polio Day itself, Bexhill Beach Garden was illuminated in purple on Sunday 25 October, creating a striking local symbol of the global campaign to eradicate polio.
The project was led by Lynn Langlands, an honorary member of the Rotary Club of Bexhill, and was jointly supported by the Rotary Club of Bexhill and the Rotary Club of Senlac St Leonards. The illumination brought the community’s attention to Rotary’s long-standing commitment to protecting children everywhere from this preventable disease.
Purple has special significance in Rotary’s polio campaign. In many countries, a child’s little finger is marked with purple dye after receiving the oral polio vaccine, making the colour an internationally recognised symbol of immunisation and hope.
By lighting the Beach Garden purple, the organisers joined communities around the world in recognising World Polio Day and raising awareness of the work still needed to achieve a polio-free world.
During the day, Graham Forster, Governor of Rotary district 1120, plus the deputy Mayor of Bexhill town council Paul Peters visited the Beach Garden.
Rotary International continues to support the worldwide effort to eradicate polio. Its work is strengthened through partnership with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, helping to fund vaccination programmes, disease surveillance and the rapid response required to stop outbreaks.
The Bexhill illumination demonstrated how a local initiative can help keep this global public-health goal visible. The event raised around £300 for the fight to eradicate polio. The Rotary clubs thanked Lynn Langlands for leading the project and everyone whose support helped the Beach Garden shine purple for World Polio Day.
